You Call That Having No Appetite?

The afternoon passed quickly.

Eight more rooms at the inn were booked.

Including the guests who had yet to check out, thirteen of its thirty-two rooms were occupied by five in the afternoon.

The occupancy rate was still below fifty percent.

Business today was the worst it had been all week.

For an obscure little place like the Fortunate Inn, ups and downs in business were normal.

It was nothing like famous inns such as Sunrise Mountain Villa and Goddess Manor, where you couldn't get a room without booking ahead.

To put it bluntly, little places like the Fortunate Inn survived on whatever scraps the bigger establishments left behind.

Eight out of ten guests at the Fortunate Inn were spontaneous travelers who had set off without planning ahead.

Du Huan and Li Li, who had checked in three days earlier, were no exception.

The two had originally chosen the Fortunate Inn because they had no other choice.

Given their incomes, even staying at the Three Pure Ones Palace for over two thousand a night would have been comfortably within their means.

But before coming to Mount Sanqing, they hadn't made any plans or booked an inn or hotel in advance.

They had simply packed a few changes of clothes, slung a backpack over their shoulders, and headed for Mount Sanqing.

When they arrived, all the popular hotels and inns were fully booked.

They had no choice but to settle for the Fortunate Inn.

Their original plan had been to spend one night there, then try booking another inn or hotel and move once they found somewhere better.

But once they arrived at the Fortunate Inn, they immediately fell in love with its clean, hygienic accommodations!

The rooms weren't large, and neither the furnishings nor the fixtures were particularly high-end, but those shortcomings hardly outweighed its strengths!

When traveling, they could make do with everything else, but cleanliness was nonnegotiable!

It was no exaggeration to say that the Fortunate Inn was cleaner than any of the five-star hotels they had stayed in!

That was precisely why they had decided to stay at the Fortunate Inn for a while, tentatively settling on a week.

As for where they would go after that week, it would depend on their mood.

Both were freelancers who could work with nothing more than a computer and a keyboard, so they had no restrictions on where they lived.

Over the past two years, they had traveled all over the country, visiting plenty of scenic areas and tourist attractions.

"Huanhuan, what should we have for dinner tonight?"

At six that evening, Li Li knocked and entered Du Huan's room to discuss dinner.

Over the past few days, they had already tried all the local specialties.

"I don't know either. I don't really have an appetite."

Du Huan stopped typing, lifted her hands from her custom pink keyboard, and turned toward Li Li.

"Is there anything you want? I'll tag along and have a little of whatever you're having."

"There's nothing I particularly want either..."

Li Li suddenly remembered what Lin Xiaomeng had told her that afternoon, and her eyes lit up.

"Oh, right, Huanhuan! Didn't Xiaomeng say the inn was giving every guest a free serving of egg fried rice tonight?

Let's just have egg fried rice. That'll save us going out to hunt for food."

"A free serving of egg fried rice?"

Du Huan hadn't gone out that afternoon, so she hadn't heard about it.

"Yep. Xiaomeng told me when I went downstairs to buy a drink. She said it would be ready around six thirty. And now..."

Li Li raised her wrist to glance at her white sports watch and said:

"It's already six twenty-five. They'll probably bring it up soon."

"Perfect. Let's just wait here and save ourselves a trip downstairs. Come to think of it, it's been ages since I last had egg fried rice."

Du Huan wasn't particularly fussy about food. As long as it filled her stomach, that was enough.

"Sniff, sniff, sniff..."

Du Huan suddenly sniffed the air and looked questioningly at Li Li beside her.

"Li Li, do you smell something really good?"

"Huh? Something really good?"

After hearing Du Huan's question, Li Li sniffed too. She caught the aroma as well.

"I do! It smells like... oh, right! Like egg fried rice!"

Just as Li Li finished speaking, footsteps sounded outside the door, drawing closer until they stopped at the entrance.

Knock, knock, knock-

"Huanhuan, are you in? Our inn has added egg fried rice to the menu, and we're offering free samples today. I've brought you a serving."

After the knock on Du Huan's door, Lin Xiaomeng's voice came from outside.

"We're here, Xiaomeng."

Li Li was closer to the entrance. After answering Lin Xiaomeng, she pulled the door open with a creak.

Outside, Lin Xiaomeng was carrying two large plastic bags packed with meal containers.

"Oh, you're here too, Li Li. There's one for you as well."

Lin Xiaomeng smiled and greeted Li Li, then took two meal containers from a plastic bag and handed them to her.

Over the past couple of days, Du Huan and Li Li had come and gone often enough to become familiar faces to Lin Xiaomeng.

Lin Xiaomeng was younger than both of them and always addressed them as older sisters.

"It smells amazing! I can smell it right through the container. Your timing couldn't be better, Xiaomeng. Huanhuan and I were just worrying about what to eat tonight. Thanks!"

Li Li thanked Lin Xiaomeng and reached out to take the containers from her.

"You're welcome, Li Li. You and Huanhuan should eat it while it's hot. It tastes better that way. I'm off to deliver meals to the other guests."

"Sure, go ahead. Thanks for all your hard work."

"Tell your boss to give you a raise."

Li Li and Du Huan teased Lin Xiaomeng with smiles before closing the door.

"Wow! This egg fried rice looks absolutely perfect!"

Li Li opened her container. At the sight of the golden-orange rice, each grain distinct, and the fragrant wisps rising from it, her mouth was already watering.

"It has everything-color, aroma, flavor. It looks so delicious."

Du Huan, who had had no appetite just moments earlier, lifted the lid of her container and immediately regained it at the sight of the egg fried rice!

"Let's see how it tastes!"

"Let's see how it tastes!"

Du Huan and Li Li looked at each other, speaking the very same words as though their minds were in sync.

"What are we waiting for? Let's dig in!"

They deftly tore open the wrappers around their disposable plastic spoons, scooped up some egg fried rice, and brought it to their mouths.

After one mouthful, they exchanged another glance, their eyes brimming with delighted surprise.

"Oh my god, this egg fried rice is incredible!"

Li Li hadn't even swallowed her mouthful before she couldn't resist praising it.

"It really is! I've never had egg fried rice this good before! It's fragrant without being greasy, and the textures are so distinct. Just amazing."

Du Huan, too, fell in love with the egg fried rice at the first bite.

With such delicious food in front of them, neither had time for idle chatter. They quickly polished off their respective containers of egg fried rice.

They ate every last bit, leaving not a single grain behind.

"The flavor is absolutely incredible. How can something as simple as egg fried rice taste this good?"

Li Li licked her lips, her expression showing how much she was savoring the lingering flavor.

Beside her, Du Huan suggested, "Li Li, how about... another serving each?"

"Pfft!"

Li Li burst out laughing at her friend's suggestion.

She had eaten every last grain of her egg fried rice, and now she wanted another serving.

What happened to having no appetite?